The Emperor penguin, the tallest and largest penguin in the world, has been formally designated as a vulnerable species by the US government due to the serious threat that the climate disaster poses to the birds.
The penguins, which are unique to Antarctica and are at risk of going extinct nearly entirely due to the melting of sea ice over the course of this century, were added to the list of endangered species on Tuesday by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
Climate change is having a profound impact on species around the world
“Climate change is having a profound impact on species around the world and addressing it is a priority for the administration,” said Martha Williams, director of the Fish and Wildlife Service. “The listing of the emperor penguin serves as an alarm bell but also a call to action.”
Emperor penguins, who may grow to a height of 4 feet, are well known for taking extraordinarily drastic measures to raise their young. Male and female pairs alternately protect their eggs from the cold while the other looks for food. Although penguins move at an almost amusingly sluggish pace on land, they are skilled hunters in the water and on the sea ice, where they hunt for fish and crustaceans.
The emperor penguin has had a more than 50% decline in population since the 1970s
For the penguins to relax, find refuge during their yearly moult, and escape from predators, the sea ice itself is essential. The seas around and below the ice provide food for the penguins as well. But as a result of global warming, sea ice is disappearing, affecting the habitat of penguins, and ocean acidification is reducing the availability of krill, a crucial food source.
A recurring recurrence of events like the 2016 Halley Bay sea ice breakup that resulted in the death of more than 10,000 chicks from the second-largest recorded emperor colony poses a concern due to changes taking place in the Antarctic. The chicks drowned because they were not yet able to swim properly. The colony still hasn’t recovered.
Since the 1970s, the population of the Point Géologie emperor penguin colony, which was depicted in the movie March of the Penguins, has decreased by over 50 per cent.